宾州 (Bīn zhōu) — Pennsylvania (US state)

Definition

noun
Pennsylvania (US state)

Examples

  • 宾州，。
    Tā qù nián qù Bīn zhōu liú xué, xué de shì jīng jì xué.
    He went to Pennsylvania last year to study economics.
  • 宾州。
    Bīn zhōu De fèi chéng shì měi guó de lì shǐ míng chéng.
    Philadelphia in Pennsylvania is a historic city in the US.
  • 宾州，。
    Wǒ péng you zhù zài Bīn zhōu, nà lǐ dōng tiān hěn lěng.
    My friend lives in Pennsylvania, where it's very cold in winter.

Origin

Compound word
构词法gòucífǎ
偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

宾bīnPennsylvania (transliteration abbreviation)
州zhōustate

宾 is a transliteration abbreviation for Pennsylvania, and 州 means state.

Characters in this word

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 賓; 宾 is its simplified writing.

Meaning part形符xíngfú
貝貝bèi
Sound part声符shēngfú
𡧍
𡧍𡧍賓bīn
The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 賓 is built from 𡧍 and 貝: 𡧍 gives the sound, and 貝 relates to the meaning. The simplified 宾 is a later abbreviation, so its parts are not the historical pieces.

Open 宾 →

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

州 originally drew an islet in a river.

Open 州 →

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